This invention relates generally to hinges, and more particularly to hinges moveable between a retracted and an extended position to thereby facilitate the painting of a vehicle.
During the manufacturing process of cars, trucks, and other vehicles, the body of the vehicle and the vehicle's doors and rear gate are typically painted together simultaneously. The simultaneous painting insures that the vehicle body, doors and gate are all of a precisely matching color. Because the hinges which connect the vehicle doors and rear gate to the vehicle body are also typically painted, it is desirable that the doors and gate be attached to the vehicle during the painting process. However, due to the generally small spaces between the doors or gate and the vehicle body, it is difficult to paint therebetween. This difficulty often necessitates painting the gates and doors in a first position, and then following this up with a second step of painting when the doors and gates are in a second position. This second step, of course, requires extra time and expense and is therefore desirably eliminated.
In the past, the problem of painting the relatively inaccessible areas between the vehicle body and gates or doors has been solved by the use of extendable hinges. The extendable hinges are moveable between a retracted normal position and an extended painting position. In the extended painting position, the gate or doors are spaced a sufficient distance away from the vehicle body to enable painting therebetween to be accomplished satisfactorily and in a single step. After painting, the hinge is moved back and secured in its retracted position and thereafter functions as a normal hinge. While these hinges have greatly facilitated the painting of vehicles, the past hinges have not been completely without their own disadvantages.
One disadvantage of the prior extendable hinges has been the necessity of inserting one or more screws, or other extraneous parts, into the hinge to secure it in the extended painting position. This requires an additional labor step and therefore slows down the manufacturing process and adds expense. Another disadvantage of prior extendable hinges has been the need to discard the screws used to secure the hinge in the extended position. These screws have typically been discarded for two reasons. First, these screws are often scuffed when they hold the hinge they hold the hinge and attached gate in the extended position, and are therefore desirably replaced with new screws to secure the hinge in its retracted position. Second, in some prior extendable hinges it is necessary to provide additional screws to secure the hinge in the retracted position after painting. Because these additional screws will not have been painted, they will not match the other screws. In such a case, it is typically desirable to replace the painted screws with unpainted screws so that all the screws match. The discarding of screws, of course, results in undesirable waste and expense. Some prior extendable hinges also suffer from the disadvantage of requiring welding, riveting, or the like of various parts of the hinge to manufacture it. These types of steps increase the cost of manufacturing the hinge, and are therefore undesirable.